How to choose a server for your small business

Making a decision on the growing infrastructure needs of your computer network is a daunting task. When your business is scaling up, the last thing you want to do is to take half measures and have to redo the entire process in a relatively short period of time. Consult with the experts at West County Computers and make the right moves the first time.

What are your business needs?

It’s really the first thing that you must decide before you choose a server. What will it be used for? A server can be used for various things like secure email, hosting your website or even sharing documents between employees. Perhaps you want to open an eCommerce store. You may even be in the market to upgrade your aging server hardware because they are obsolete.

What capabilities do you need it to have?

Dedicated servers can become a one stop shop for your business as many are capable of running your entire business by themselves. The most powerful can easily handle high traffic sites as well as all of your web applications and emails. Typically, most small businesses don’t require the most high end servers to comfortably keep things going smoothly. If you don’t need that you may want the cloud based option where you have much more flexibility to scale as needed. You may even go with a hybrid for even more functionality.

What software do you need it to run?

Linux and Windows based servers both have advantages and disadvantages. Linux is more flexible and is the most cost effective. It will also allow more open source apps which can be a big boost. However, your administrator has to be on point to get things up to speed. Windows based servers are proprietary and will only run specific Windows software but are easier for the average small business owner to set up. The cost is much higher for these machines though..

Do you want to buy or lease?

Speaking of costs. Buying new servers can add substantial costs to your hardware infrastructure budget.Fortunately, most have options to lease on a monthly or yearly basis. Carefully examine your financial flexibility before you make that decision.

Making these decisions will be easy after you meet with one of our experts to go more in depth on which solutions fit best with where your business is going. Book your appointment today by going to our website www.westcountycomputers.com.